Steins:Fate
by SteelBlades333
Summary: "I am the bone of my sword," those words were uttered long in the past, words that carried the undeterred resolve of a young man named Emiya Shirou. However, Fate decided to take an extraordinary twist in plot when Shirou suddenly wakes up in an entirely new world with amnesia by his side. Will the boy still be able to live up his ideals by saving ALL in the madness loop of time?
1. Amnesia

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the Fate series or any other series I write about in this site.**

* * *

 _ **Steins;Fate**_

 _ **Chapter 1 – Amnesia**_

Shirou opened his eyes as the scene in front of his eyes contorted and twisted in a nauseating manner. Once the wavering scenery halted its sickening movement, Shirou placed his hand onto the ground and lifted his lying body up in a seated position. Scanning around his new surrounding, Shirou then averted his eyes to the ground where his hand rested as he supported his leaning posture on his upper limbs. Feeling the pasture of lush green grass as the soil dirtied his palms, Shirou stood up in a cautious manner.

Right now he was what could be considered as a park with a couple benches and trees in the vast green plain. In front of him and outside the boundaries of the pasture was an ornate five-story building that had English writing above the entrance of the building. The only word Shirou could vaguely recognize was the word "Science", all the other alphabet forming words escaped his knowledge. Turning his head to the right, Shirou could see young adults walking together in small groups as they chatted away happily while others are engaged in a heated argument. If Shirou had to make a guess, he would say he is in a university park.

Shirou tried to recall how and when he went to the park and lied down, but the memory eluded him. Thinking back, most of his memories were a fuzzy haze. Shirou's heart lurched, his mind alerting him of an unknown danger. But years of training has dictated him to calm down in similar situations like this. Trying to recall whatever past he could, Shirou began to say out loud anything he remembered in Japanese.

"Fire … S-Saber, Tohsaka, Illya," all those names began to warm his heart as he continued to remember. "Gi-Gilgamesh, Excalibur, Servant, Grail, Magi, Projection, war, d-death."

Shirou didn't remember much, but he could now be able to recall one event after another as memories began to gradually come back to him. But every time he tried to remember what happened prior he got here though, he received an extreme headache in return. Just remembering the minuscule information he already has gave him a serious headache as sweat beaded on his forehead. Shirou was no stranger to pain, that much he knew; however, he is not one who invites pain upon himself. Shirou halted his train of thought, it would not do him any good if he passed out right here in this park. For now, it was best for him to figure out where he is.

Stretching out his back as his sore muscles protested, Shirou easily deduced that he must have been doing some strenuous exercise prior his amnesia. Walking over to the nearest building, Shirou pushed opened the glass door to enter as the air conditioner welcomed him into the building. Walking casually through the neat hallway, Shirou cautiously glanced over each room's interior at the sides of the hallway. After looking at two of the rooms, Shirou confirmed that he did not misinterpret the word "Science" that was written above the entrance of this building.

The interior of the room was neatly organized and clean, some of the rooms containing high-end technology, all of them which Shirou was sure he has never seen in his life before. These pieces of equipment were used to accomplish specific tasks, specifically anything pertaining to the field of science in order to further its advancement. Still maintaining his walking speed, Shirou saw something through his peripheral vision that interested him. An office. Not just any office, but an office that had on its table littered with paperwork. That caught Shirou's attention. If anything, it could give him a clue where he is and what's going on; however, Shirou was more curious about the former. Turning left as if it were the natural thing to do, Shirou entered the room without a second thought.

Another piercing headache invaded Shirou's head as he inwardly grimaced and resisted the urge to place his hand on his head in case it tipped someone off in a wrong way. The last thing he needed was attention on his behalf. Hearing no sound around him, Shirou walked into the room with blurred vision as he walked with the best of his abilities towards the office desk. Rubbing his eyes, Shirou's vision cleared a bit more as he tried to read the contents of the paper laid on the gray metallic table.

A glance at the paper made Shirou inwardly curse in frustration. English. The whole paperwork was littered with the English alphabets which looked to Shirou no better than gibberish.

"What are you doing in here?" a voice sounded from beside him. "This is not a place for students to loiter around."

Shirou heart lurched uncomfortably. How could he been so careless, this should have never happened!

Lying the paper back down to the desk smoothly as he turned around to meet the English speaking person, Shirou was shocked to witness a young girl in a lab coat with unkept hair speaking to him.

"Uh," racking his brain for any English he knew, Shirou came up with a perfect statement to explain his predicament, "my English … uh, bad."

The girl in front of him frowned at Shirou, probably thinking that Shirou was lying.

Shirou, hoping to show his deepest sincerity in causing such a spectacle and confusion apologized in Japanese as he gave a polite bow. "Gomenasai."

At those words, Shirou could sense the attitude displayed on the girl's face took a complete 180o flip.

"You speak Japanese?" the girl asked Shirou, this time in fluent Japanese, speaking not even with an accent.

This caused Shirou to widen his eyes in surprise which brought a grin to the girl's face. "You speak Japanese?!" Shirou said in disbelief though he was internally grateful.

The girl frowned at Shirou for repeating her own words, but quickly dismissed the fact. "Why are you in here?" the girl asked, going straight to the point, "Are you lost?"

Shirou gave a sheepish chuckle, "You can say that," Shirou began his explanation. "I can't seem to remember anything, so I was hoping to know where I am through these papers. But … " Shirou eyed the papers littered on the table, "they are in English," he said in defeat.

"You don't remember anything?" the girl questioned Shirou.

"Only a few glimpses here and there," Shirou admitted. "I think I may have banged my head really hard, I get a headache off and on from remembering my memories. Could you tell me where is this place?"

The girl looked at Shirou in disbelief, but still nevertheless gave Shirou his answer. "This is the Victor Chondria University."

"Victor Chondria," Shirou muttered to himself as he trailed off. "Country?"

The girl raised an eyebrow at Shirou in question and suspicion. "America."

Shirou almost choked on his next words as his eyes widened in surprise. "America?!"

"I swear if you are making this up I will call the police immediately and get you arrested for sexual harassment."

"Sexual harassment?" Shirou said slowly as if to make sure he heard correctly.

"What do you remember?" the girl said in annoyance. "Do you remember your name?"

"Emiya Shirou, pleasure to meet you. And yours?"

"Maho," the girl said with crossed arms, "Hiyajo Maho. So what do you remember?"

Straight to the point again, Shirou thought to himself, not that he was complaining. "Just a few names, fire, war, lots of death, my school life – "

"Wait, fire, war, death? You say that as if it's nothing! I am going to call the police RIGHT NOW! This is not a funny prank that you're trying to pull!" Maho declared indignantly as she prepared to stomp towards where the telephone was located.

"Wait, Hiyajo-san," Shirou called out, "I'm not lying, that's just what I remember," Shirou said honestly.

Maho halted her warpath towards the telephone. "What else?"

"Huh?'

"What else do you remember, give me a specific memory."

"Well," Shirou thought for a moment, "the first thing that comes to mind is … fire."

Maho visibly frowned at the words Shirou spoke as if expecting him to continue to prank her.

"Fire … was everywhere around where I was. Everyone desperately to be saved, all of them calling out for salvation … but, I couldn't save any of them," Shirou said as he looked blankly in front of him as he relived the memory. "I then fell down, thinking that I was going to die. Then, someone found me," Shirou said fondly, his voice laced with admiration, "he was crying with joy, saying thank you over and over again. At that moment, I decided I will live, I will live just to make that man happy and see him with joy. That man became my old man," Shirou explained. "His name is … Kiritsugu, Emiya Kiritsugu," Shirou voiced out once his father's name entered his fuzzy mind.

Maho eyed Shirou suspiciously for a moment before sighing in resignation. "You're serious, aren't you?"

"Yes," Shirou said without a trace of doubt. He remembered that widespread fire all to well, it was a memory etched into his very soul. Something that he will never be able to forget.

"When did it happen?" Maho asked.

"When I was seven," Shirou said.

"Where did the fire took place?"

Shirou thought for a long time, "I … don't remember," Shirou said with a defeated sigh.

"Anybody you remember?"

"Yes, I remember a couple of names."

"Give me all of them."

"There is Saber, Tohsaka Rin, Matou Sakura, Fuji-nee, Matou Shinji, Issei Ryuudou, Kotomine Kirei, and … there is you, Hiyajo Maho." Shirou decided to not mention Gilgamesh's name, there was so much Shirou knew about the powerful man that he knew others will never be able to understand. Just announcing his name will cause people only more confusion. And Shirou wanted to avoid that at all cost.

Maho decided to disregard Shirou's last statement about her name. It seems like this Emiya Shirou has already considered her as a friend. "Saber. That's an English name isn't it?"

"Yes," Shirou said, "but, it's an alias."

"An alias?" Maho questioned, "I'm guessing she's a good swordsman?"

Shirou smiled softly, "Yes, she is."

"And Kotomine Kirei, you said that with a tinge of disdain. I take it you aren't on good terms with him."

This girl sure is observant, Shirou thought with respect. "I don't think I was on good terms with him, I think he tried to kill me before," Shirou thought absentmindedly.

"Kill you," Maho muttered. "I was expecting something more along the lines of you had a nasty argument with him at best."

Shirou shook his head seriously, "No, nothing like that."

Maho sighed, "I'm not sure how to help you, maybe you should go see Dr. Leskinen, he's my professor and the researcher of the Neuroscience Department. He might be able to know what's going on."

"Doctor Leskinen," Shirou murmured to himself, then smiled. "I will do just that, could you lead me to where he is?"

Maho turned around and eyed the pile of work she left on her little workspace at the other side of the room before looking back at Shirou. "I'll take you there," Maho reluctantly said, "he should be in the neuroscience research lab right now."

"Arigato gozaimasu."

Maho then turned around to grab her ID card on the table across from Shirou before returning back to him and exiting out the doorway as Shirou silently followed her.

Walking up the stairs and to the second floor, Maho lead Shirou past a couple rooms in a decent width hallway before knocking on one of the doors. "Dr. Leskinen, someone is here for you," Maho called out in English.

No sooner did Maho called out in front of the doorway did the door slid open to reveal a tall broad American man in his forties.

"Oh, hi Maho, how have you been? I see that you have brought a new friend here today," the doctor said with a smile.

"I have better days," Maho answered unceremoniously before looking back at Shirou while ushering him inside the room as Dr. Leskinen stood aside to let them in.

When Shirou walked into the large space, Shirou was shocked at the sheer contrast between this office and Maho's workspace where he was earlier. Even though Shirou was baffled at the differences between the individual spaces, he didn't voice out his disbelief nor showed it on his face.

"This is Emiya Shirou, he's Japanese," Maho began the conversation once they were inside the room.

"Emiya Shirou," the doctor muttered in surprise, "I see you have met an interesting friend, Maho."

Maho didn't bother to grace Dr. Leskinen a reply. "I came here because apparently Shirou here has lost most of his memories suddenly."

These words caused Dr. Leskinen's eyebrows to furrow in worry and confusion. "Since when did you recall having lost your memory, Shirou?" Dr. Leskinen asked.

"Ten, fifteen minutes ago," Shirou gave an estimated answer. Thinking back how he got his amnesia caused his memory to go fuzzy once again as a headache gradually made itself apparent.

Dr. Leskinen raised his eyebrows in surprise, "Very recent then," he said with an accent as he spoke in Japanese.

"Any way you can help me get my memories back?" Shirou asked with uncertainty when the doctor became silent for a while.

"I have a couple in mind," Leskinen said, "but for now, just carry out your life in a usual manner and make sure to get plenty of rest. Also, make sure to not force yourself to remember the past if it makes you uncomfortable. After a few days, we shall see how your condition is progressing. If it's still the same, we shall try an alternative option."

Shirou smiled with gratitude towards Dr. Leskinen, Shirou then bowed down in a traditional Japanese manner as a show of respect and thanks.

"Thank you very much, you have been a great help," Shirou said.

Dr. Leskenin gave a friendly laugh of his own at Shirou's foreign display of politeness. "I am always glad to help a friend of Maho's. Make sure you come by often!" Dr. Leskenin then held out a hand to Shirou's direction as Shirou looked at the outstretched palm and met him in the middle with his own as they shook strongly before both backing up at their respective places.

"If you guys ever need help, I will be more than happy to do so, just first give me a cal – " Shirou abruptly stopped mid-sentence. Did he have a phone? Has he ever used a phone? Then why did those words come out so naturally?

Maho looked at Shirou quizzically, "You forgot your phone number?" Maho asked, her voice laced with suspicion.

Shirou snapped himself out of his train of thought. "Y-yeah," he muttered, "but the words just came out … so naturally."

Maho frowned, "Your amnesia seems a lot worse than I had first assumed."

Shirou shrugged. None of that mattered now, even though Shirou wanted his memories back badly, sulking over the predicament at hand will not accomplish anything.

Shirou then turned over to Maho and looked at her straight in the eye. "Do … you guys mind if I help around here for a while? As my memories are a jumbled mess, I have no idea where I belong and what I did. Since there is nothing much we can do about my memories right now, I think it would be better if I do something more productive than walking around."

Dr. Leskinen thought for a moment while rubbing his chin, "I don't see why not, however, I don't believe we have any jobs that need to be done."

"I could help tidy up Maho's workplace," Shirou offered without thinking much about what he's saying.

"Wha—"

"Ahahaha," Dr. Leskinen cheerfully laughed at Shirou's words and the sincerity behind them. "That would be a splendid idea. I believe Maho is in dire need of an organized workplace."

"Professor!" Maho protested loudly. "He can't—"

"Is something wrong, Hiyajo-san?" Shirou asked with confusion.

Maho whirled around at Shirou. "Yes, EVERYTHING IS!"

"Huh?"

"I just knew you for a couple minutes and now you're offering to clean my office?!"

"You don't have to pay me," Shirou stated, not sure what was the problem.

Maho's mouth gradually turned into a frown as she placed her palm on her face, "That's not any better."

Before Shirou could answer back, another voice cut in from behind him.

"Senpai, you shouldn't complain," a smug voice stated. "It's not every day you meet someone who is willing to help clean your office."

Turning around, Shirou was met with a red-hair girl who is slightly shorter than him yet much taller than Maho. Her red colored hair ended above her waist and her eyes glinted in amusement. She, like Maho, was also wearing a spotless white lab coat.

"Kurisu," Maho scowled out with annoyance at the newly appeared "rival".

Kurisu muffled the chuckle that was about to come out of her before looking over at Shirou. "Who's your new friend here, Senpai?"

"Emiya Shirou," Shirou introduced himself while giving an outstretched arm towards Kurisu's direction.

Kurisu took Shirou's hand and shook it warmly, "Makise Kurisu."

"So, are you also a friend of Maho's?" Shirou asked out of curiosity.

Kurisu smiled, "Yes, we have been friends for a couple months now."

Shirou nodded his head as he examined Kurisu's formal attire. "Do you also work here?" Shirou suddenly asked.

Kurisu cocked her head slightly at the unexpected question. "Yes, I work here as a scientist along with Maho and Professor Leskinen."

A sudden thought entered Shirou's mind. If Kurisu is a friend of Maho's … then, is her workplace in a similar state of disarray like Maho's?

"Would you like any help cleaning your office or anywhere else as well?" Shirou asked, hoping to be useful and do something productive.

The words that left Shirou's mouth stunned Kurisu as she widened her eyes in surprise. "Who is this friend of yours, Senpai?" Kurisu asked Maho, surprised that she had struck gold with the few people she has ever interacted with.

Maho shrugged nonchalantly, "He's Emiya Shirou," Maho stated the obvious, "other than he's a Japanese, I don't know. He claims he lost his memories."

This statement caused Kurisu to perk up in surprise. "Amnesia?"

Maho nodded solemnly.

Kurisu eyed Shirou sympathetically, "Do you remember your relatives, where you live, anything of that sort?"

Shirou didn't have to think much to answer her question. "I remember some friends I have back in Japan," Shirou paused before continuing to answer the second question, "but I can't seem to remember where I live."

"What's the first place you remember when you had amnesia?" Kurisu asked.

"Errr … I don't know. The first place I saw was the park in front of this building."

Kurisu nodded in understanding. "Professor Leskinen, is it all right if I and Maho-senpai check the student logs for his name? We might be able to find something useful."

Dr. Leskinen hummed in agreement. "I will give you the necessary permission to view those files later."

"Do you have any personal belongings on you that might aid us in your identity?" Kurisu asked next, "Cellphone, ID card, photo, et cetera?"

Shirou inwardly berated himself for not doing this sooner as he rummaged through his pant pockets for anything. Sure enough, Shirou found a hand-held device inside his right coat pocket. Shirou eyed the device for a moment before realizing what it was.

"It's a cell phone," Shirou muttered.

Shirou then flipped open the cell phone to see a small screen and a set of dials at the bottom portion of the phone. The cellular device was colored a silver gray, and the scratches on the outside cover of the phone proved that this phone has been receiving some rough treatment.

"How … do you use this?" Shirou asked hesitantly. Even though he could remember some of the people he met back in Japan, never did he remembered using a device like this. He only recalled others using this in his past.

Kurisu and Maho frowned at Shirou's statement. "Your amnesia is worst than I thought," Kurisu commented. "Here, mind if I look at the phone?"

Shirou nodded as he handed the electronic device over to Kurisu. Kurisu looked over the device as she fiddled with the phone keys. "This is a very old model," Kurisu said after a minute of inspecting the phone. "There's a powerful password encryption on this device, if I can get my computer here, it shouldn't be too hard to crack it, even with my skills."

Shirou frowned at those words. A powerful password encryption? He doesn't even remember ever having a phone and let alone using one. And now for some reason not only does he possess a phone, it somehow has a powerful password encryption set up on it?

"Yeah, please do that," Shirou told Kurisu with gratitude.

Kurisu smiled, "No problem, a friend of Maho's is a friend of mines."

And with that, Kurisu left the room with the Shirou's phone in her hand.

Shirou then turned around to meet Dr. Leskinen and Maho. "I believe I have taken more than enough of your time. Thank you for all the help." Shirou shifted his body to meet Maho's eyes, "Hiyajo-san, do you mind if I get started?" Shirou asked with a sincere smile.

Maho sighed, completely dejected as her face clouded with hatred at how such a predicament befell upon her.

"Just … get it over with," Maho finally voice out huskily and strained.

Shirou softly smiled as he went out along with Maho to her office.

* * *

Kurisu typed commands after commands as she peeled apart the password encryption one by one on Emiya Shirou's phone. After several minutes of hacking, Kurisu finally got past the password. Even though Kurisu is by no means a professional hacker, however the age of this model allowed her to bypass its security with relative ease despite the password encryption on the phone being the state of the art of its time. The thought of a commoner having such a powerful encryption on this old piece of tech made Kurisu question Shirou's identity and origin.

Scanning through the phone's data, Kurisu raised both eyebrows in surprise at the unexpected find. From what she's seeing, the data on the phone has mostly been completely erased. Gritting her teeth in annoyance and frustration, Kurisu began to scavenge through the pile of data for anything worth looking at. There was something off with this Emiya Shirou, and Kurisu was fully intent on discovering what it is.

* * *

"Don't touch that book," Maho cried out as Shirou was about to close the book and place it on the bookshelf by the office table.

Shirou raised an eyebrow at Maho's behavior. "Are you in the middle of reading this one too?" he asked.

"Y-yes," Maho stammered in slight embarrassment at Shirou's gaze.

Shirou gave an audible sigh. "This is the fifth book that you are in the middle of reading. Have you ever heard of a bookmark?"

"O-of course!" Maho exclaimed. "But it's just far more efficient to leave it open on the page I'm at."

Shirou sighed once again at Maho's stubborn faulty "logical" explanation before placing the opened book onto Maho's table as neatly as possible with the other pile of books.

After organizing Maho's research books and papers, Shirou next went to find a disposable cloth which he was able to find in the bathroom. Soaking and cleaning the cloth before using it, Shirou went back to Maho's office and started mopping down the dusty floor which clearly has not been cleaned for a while. Once the floor was spotless, Shirou then continued by cleaning and dusting off the furniture in the room. Last, but not least, Shirou went over and opened the window beside the room to allow some much-needed fresh air in. All that work ended up taking longer than Shirou had estimated as he looked over at setting sun which was visible from the only window in the room. Looking over at the hanging clock on the wall, Shirou discovered it took him around five hours to accomplish all the work.

Nodding to himself in satisfaction, Shirou walked over towards Dr. Leskinen's workplace.

* * *

It took much longer than Kurisu thought it would to recover the little amount of data she could possibly find on Shirou's phone. Kurisu supposed this was just another testament of the vast gulf that separated her skills between that of a professional hacker. Looking over at the once corrupted data, Kurisu began to open one text message after another and viewed over whether what she has discovered as anything worth noting or not. Perhaps maybe she went a little overboard with this phone data problem? Shrugging off the self doubt, Kurisu opened the most recent text message sent to Shirou two weeks ago.

March 4th 2010  
Anonymous - 4:13 A.M.  
SERN will not repeat itself.  
You have ignored us far too long.  
You have crossed the end of line, Emiya. - 4:14 A.M.  
You will be silenced.

Kurisu mentally gulped at the message. Is … this a prank? Kurisu then opened another message out of both curiosity and instinct.

March 1st 2010  
Anonymous - 10:32 P.M.  
Emiya, this will be your last chance and warning.  
Return back to SERN and complete the project.  
We have pinpointed your location and we are sending a group to escort you back.  
If you return our hospitality with bloodshed, we shall eliminate you. - 10:33 P.M.

Kurisu opened her mouth slightly in horror. Is … this actually real? Not just a dumb, rude prank? Kurisu silently gulped without realizing it as she opened message after message until all of them has been read through.

Kurisu slumped on her office chair in defeat. She has read and re-read the messages over and over again. She had questioned herself why would SERN, a famous scientific community in Switzerland, need to kill someone like Emiya Shirou. The answer was clearly apparent after reading through the messages. Shirou knew something that SERN didn't want others to know about. Something about a project regarding time, that was all Kurisu could gather after reading through all the relatively short texts.

Looking back, Kurisu began to wonder whether Shirou's words were even credible, was he trustworthy. But looking at the way he acted and the manner he exhibited, even going so far as to give Kurisu his phone, the doubts Kurisu had in her mind vanished away. There was nothing to gain by faking amnesia. Faking amnesia only gave him a higher probability of getting caught by the organization called SERN.

Closing the lid of the laptop and turning off Shirou's phone. Kurisu stood up from her chair as she straightened out her wrinkled lab coat. It is time to inform Emiya Shirou of her findings.

* * *

"Hiyajo," Shirou called out as he knocked the door to Dr. Leskinen's office a couple times before going in.

"Oh, hi Shirou!" Dr. Leskinen said when he got his eyes off his computer. Most likely working on some kind of science related work.

"Hi Dr. Leskinen," Shirou greeted. "Do you happen to know where Hiyajo is?"

Dr. Leskinen turned his head to look in front of him before pointing at a location up ahead. "Maho should be in there," he said with a smile. "It seems like she is in her own world if she can't hear you."

"I'm sure she's just wearing an earphone," Shirou reasoned before thanking Dr. Leskinen and headed towards the previously pointed direction.

"Hiyajo, Hiyajo-san. Oh, there you are," Shirou said once he found Maho in a secluded corner working on something on her laptop. "I have finished up cleaning your office," Shirou informed her. "You can go back there and do you work in a more comfortable place if you like."

Maho just sat there silently without a single twitch as her eyes were continuously strained on the computer screen.

"Hiyajo?" Shirou called out, wondering if she was okay. Seeing no movement from her still, Shirou cautiously moved up towards her and called out once again. "Hiyajo? Maho? Senpai?"

At Shirou's last words which was said louder than conversational volumes, Maho leaped up from her chair in surprise as she gave an involuntary yelp.

"Are you okay, Hiyajo?" Shirou asked, a bit concerned at Maho's behavior.

Maho quickly recovered and brushed away Shirou's concern. "When did you come in? Why did you call me Senpai?" Maho questioned though it sounded more like a demand.

"I came in not too long ago," Shirou reassured her. "I kept calling your name and you won't respond, so I decided to try another tactic."

Maho cursed silently to herself as she muttered under her breath. "I got caught off guard again?!"

Looking at Maho's clouded face, Shirou quickly came up with something to say to lighten the mood. "I finished cleaning your office. You can go back there if you want. It should be much more comfortable than," Shirou motioned at the place Maho was seated, "there."

Maho sighed as she closed her computer and stood up from her chair. "Thank you, let me get my stuff."

"Anytime," Shirou smiled. "Do you need help carrying those things?"

"That won't be necessary," Maho muttered with annoyance before walking out of the room with Shirou behind her.

"Ah, Maho!" Dr. Leskinen greeted with an exuberant grin.

"Professor," Maho greeted back curtly before handing Dr. Leskinen a stack of printed papers. "The report on the Amadeus."

"Magnificent!" Dr. Leskinen said proudly. "I will look through it later, you should get some rest."

Maho nodded as she looked out at the already setting sun.

"Senpai? You have not gone home yet?" a voice suddenly interrupted the group of three.

Maho turned her gaze away from the sun that is visible from the room to Kurisu who is standing by the office doorway. "Kurisu," Maho greeted. "I should say the same to you," Maho said with a wry grin.

"Makise-san," Shirou greeted.

"Kurisu, come in!" Dr. Leskinen beckoned her in.

Kurisu complied with the request as she came over to the group. "You can call me Kurisu, Shirou," Kurisu informed. "Another thing before I leave, do you remember ever … working somewhere?"

Maho looked suspicious at the change in topic, but Shirou answered the question without hesitation. "I remember working somewhere, like restaurants and schools. Other than that … I'm not sure."

Kurisu continued on to her next question. "Do you perhaps recognize the name SERN?"

"SERN?" Shirou muttered to himself in thought. "I don't think it rings a bell."

"Then what do you re—" Kurisu stopped midway in her sentence when she saw the gaze Maho is giving her. Something must be wrong. "Ahem, I meant have you ever had an interest in science? Specifically, physics?"

'Science? I don't exactly have an innate interest in it. Why do you ask?"

"Nothing. Just curious. So what are your hobbies?" Kurisu asked, trying to cover up her previous question.

"I enjoy cleaning," Shirou thought aloud, "… and making people happy."

"Huh?" both Maho and Kurisu voiced their questioning disbelief.

"What? Is something wrong?"

"Uh, no. Just … surprised," Kurisu said. "Anyway, it's getting late. Do you have a place to stay?" Kurisu asked in an attempt to change the conversation.

"Um … I'm not sure?" Shirou said.

"What?" Kurisu exclaimed before calming down. "You forgot where didn't you."

Shirou nodded in confirmation.

"In that case …" Kurisu trailed off as she looked helplessly in Maho's direction who was on purposely ignoring her gaze.

"It's okay," Shirou smiled. "I can sleep outside. Something tells me this isn't the first time I've done so."

"What?! No, absolutely not!" Kurisu said with more conviction than intended. Maho eyed Kurisu with suspicion at her sudden outburst as Kurisu inwardly cursed herself for her lowered guard. This was the fault of all the depressing text messages she read.

"Is there a specific place you want me to sleep at?" Shirou asked.

"Well, um …"

"It doesn't seem like it will be raining anytime soon. There is no need to worry about me getting soaked. I will be fine," Shirou reassured her.

"T-that's not—"

"Shirou can stay at my place tonight if he likes," Dr. Leskinen interrupted, seeing how distress Kurisu was.

"Will that pose too much of a trouble for you?" Shirou asked, hoping not to intrude on the man's privacy.

Dr. Leskinen gave a hearty laugh. "It will be no problem, Shirou."

Shirou then bowed down at Dr. Leskinen. "I will be honored to accept your offer if that is the case. Thank you very much."

Dr. Leskinen returned Shirou a warm smile. "Shirou, if you don't mind, could you wait outside for me? I will be there to pick you up once I'm ready."

Shirou nodded in acknowledgment and turned around and went out the door.

Once Shirou was out the door, Dr. Leskinen rotated his chair so he could meet the eyes of his two research partners. "Is there something wrong, Kurisu?" Dr. Leskinen finally broke the silence as he spoke in English.

Maho was also looking at Kurisu, clearly expecting an answer from her. "I hacked into Shirou's phone," Kurisu began.

"And?" Maho asked, motioning for Kurisu to continue.

"After I hacked past the password encryption, which is far too secure for its own time. I discovered all data has been deleted from the cellular device. I decided to take a couple hours retrieving the little amount of corrupted data and miraculously managed to recover some of it. The content was … a bit off-putting."

"What do you mean?" Maho asked, concern and worry evident in her voice.

"It seems like Shirou is being hunted down by SERN," Kurisu finally revealed.

"Hunted?" Dr. Leskinen confirmed. "Is that why he doesn't have any memories?"

Kurisu shook her head. "I don't think so. SERN seems to want to end Shirou for once and begone with him. A half-baked solution like erasing his memories didn't seem like what SERN was interested in from what I've read."

"SERN?" Maho questioned. "You mean the scientific community in Switzerland. The one that has the largest particle accelerator in the world?"

"The one and only," Kurisu replied.

"But why?" Maho asked.

"Shirou knew something SERN didn't want leaking out into the public. Some kind of project relating to time, that's all I've been able to gather."

"A scientific project concerning time and important enough that they would resort to killing Shirou?" Dr. Leskinen half muttered to himself and half addressed his question to Kurisu.

"If it's important enough that they don't want it revealed to the public and are willing to end Shirou with an underhanded method, I would think it would be a project pertaining to military advancement," Maho brainstormed.

Kurisu nodded her head in agreement.

"Maybe a project on slowing down time," Maho reasoned.

Kurisu was quick to shoot down the idea. "Unlikely. If that was the project that concerns the military, it would be far easier to research on how to increase human reaction speed."

"True, but what about stopping time?"

Kurisu frowned. "Do you hear what you're saying, Senpai?"

Maho shrugged nonchalantly, "Brainstorming here. There's not much of an option that fits in a category that concerns a project about time relating to the military."

Kurisu sighed. "Stopping time won't work, time is universal. To stop it would be stopping everything and everybody. It's impossible to stop time in a selected space unless you are traveling at the speed of light according to Einstein's theory of relativity."

"What about a time machine?" Maho asked, having given up on rationality.

Kurisu froze at Maho's words. A time machine. Something which her father was obsessed with for so many years. The ability to go back in time. Was … that possible? There were a lot of things to this day scientist are unable to understand after all. Kurisu shook her head, what was she thinking. The idea of going backward or forward into time is preposterous.

"I'm going back," Kurisu suddenly announced. "There's no use pondering over these thoughts. We are clearly going nowhere with it."

"Wait a second, Kurisu!" Maho quickly stopped Kurisu before she can leave. "There's more about Shirou I need to tell you."

"Huh? What?"

"About what he remembers."

"Oh, yes. That might serve as a clue with what he's involved in. So …?"

"He remembers a couple of his friends here and there. But what concerns me the most is the other stuff he remembers. Fire, war, and lots of death are one of the first memories he remembered, I am quoting him verbatim here."

"Fire, war, and death?" Kurisu questioned in disbelief, she can feel her mouth drying at an incredible rate. What unimaginable horror has SERN subjected him?

"Perhaps that is how he lost his memories," Dr. Leskinen reasoned. "Shock and traumatic experiences can lead to excessive memory lost."

"There's too much we don't know," Maho said. "We can't immediately assume that."

"As you say, Maho. That is entirely correct. Regardless, I would like the both of you to remain cautious around Shirou. There is no telling who he is and what he is involved in. Although I trust him, as a scientist, I cannot allow my emotions to dictate my actions with something that possesses such potential danger."

Kurisu could only nod numbly at the professor's line of logic.

"Anyway," Dr. Leskinen said, this time much more cheerful. "I believe I have a guest to attend, see you both tomorrow morning at work."

"Have a good night, Professor," Maho bid farewell.

Kurisu gave a farewell as well before resuming back to her contemplating persona. Why did she have the feeling that the enigma that clouded around Emiya Shirou would only get more confusing as time goes by? No matter, sooner or later, for bad or for good, she will discover who this man truly is.

* * *

Shirou lied down on the bed Dr. Leskinen had graciously offered to him thirty minutes ago as Shirou stared absently at the white painted ceiling. Dr. Leskinen had already retired for the evening and has gone back to his bedroom for some rest. During the couple hours Shirou has met the professor, he had begun to take a liking at his optimistic child-like attitude. Despite the professor's likable character, to Shirou's surprise, he has never once been in a relationship with another woman.

Shirou continued to stare absently at the ceiling. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get a wink of sleep. In the tiny corner of his brain, something was eating away at him, something that nagged him to no end, and Shirou was intent to find out what it is. Lifting up his entire body away from the bed until he was in a seated position, Shirou bounced off the bed and landed on the ground as he sat in a crisscrossed manner. Closing his eyes as he allowed his distant memories and instincts to overtake his actions, almost as if by its own, Shirou's tongue rolled out of his mouth as he pronounced a phrase with familiarity. "Trace On."

Once the words were uttered, Shirou felt a reservoir of untapped energy overflowing. It was a unique yet familiar experience. Keeping his eyes closed, Shirou began to make out an image in his head. Dual married swords, both white and black respectively, appeared in his mind with increased clarity. Memorizing every detail of the two magnificent blades that seemed to almost shine with power, Shirou, as if guided by experience, manipulated the energy in his body and made the image into reality.

Shirou gradually opened his eyes. And in his hands laid two delicate Chinese blades that hummed with power as Shirou laid them both down onto the tiled floor. Despite knowing in his mind that what he was seeing and doing should be by all means impossible, Shirou felt oddly comforted and used to the sight in front of him. This was all the evidence he needed, the evidence that his past still lies within him. The evidence that his memories are not a fluke, not a made up imagination by his brain to follow his inner hopes and dreams.

Shirou yawned with exhaustion before holding the swords back into his hands as he traced his fingers around the back blunt side of the blades. Shirou would have liked to try swinging the dual weapons around to see what he can do with it, however Shirou was concern of waking Dr. Leskinen up, especially after the Professor had kindly extended hospitality to him to come into his home for temporary lodging. Vanishing the blades back to pure mana as if it were the most natural thing to do, Shirou just sat there, completely confused what drove him to do that.

Shirou then stood up from the ground and stretched his back before giving a soft audible sigh. There were simply too many unanswered questions in his mind, he knew glimpses of his past and had a slim idea of who he was prior his amnesia. But until he can get his memory back, Shirou was sure he would not be able to get any of his questions answered anytime soon. Toppling over the bed as the mattress sank under his weight, Shirou exhaled then inhaled silently before exhaustion took him over in a peaceful slumber.

* * *

 **Japanese Word Translation:**

 **Gomenasai** **– Sorry (Formal)  
** **Arigato Gozaimasu** **– Thank you (Formal)**

 **Thank you for reading!**

 **Please make sure to check out my primary story which can been seen in my profile page called Fate Blade Zero. It's a story where Shirou goes back in time to the Fourth Holy Grail War, details can be read under the description/summary of the story page.**

 **Also, please review and tell me your thoughts about this Fate/Stay Night and Steins;Gate crossover. This story is under experimenting stages to see how the majority audience will receive this crossover. If you have a crossover in mind that you will like to see written, please leave a review and I'll think about it. Thank you very much! – SteelBlades333**


	2. The Amadeus Part 1

_**Chapter 2 – The Amadeus Part 1**_

"Good morning, Maho-senpai," Kurisu called out from inside the lab as she stared at the fluctuating graph lines on the computer monitor.

Maho came into the lab and dropped her bag of books down unceremoniously as some of its content came spilling out onto the table.

Kurisu turned her head to look at Maho who had come up beside her with a raised eyebrow. "You … don't look too good," Kurisu commented.

Maho looked back at Kurisu with hollow baggy eyes, her disheveled hair only proved that Maho just got out of bed and had raced to the lab without so much looking at herself in the mirror. This was not the first time it has happened since Kurisu has been working in the neuroscience lab of Victor Chondria University.

Maho scowled at Kurisu's statement as she rubbed her drooping eyes while yawning aloud.

"Maho, Kurisu!" a voice announced from behind them.

Kurisu turned around to meet the familiar voice. "Professor!"

Kurisu could see from her peripheral vision that Maho's entire back tensed and straightened up at the said name. Maho immediately whirled around in surprise at the sudden visitation. "Professor Leskinen?!" Maho barely contained her yelp as Kurisu eyed Maho with amusement.

"Good morning!" Dr. Leskinen said in English with a broad smile. "I have brought someone here today."

"Huh?" Kurisu voiced with curiosity. "A visitor?"

"You can say so," Dr. Leskinen said with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "I asked him to help me retrieve something before coming here, He should be right here at any moment."

As if on cue, a voice resounded from the hallway as the said voice got increasingly louder. "Dr. Leski-inen," a voice struggled to say out loud, "I'm c-coming in."

Kurisu looked at her professor in question at what is going on. However, she was also met with a confused expression on her professor's face, which only served to pique her curiosity further.

Coming in through the entrance of the laboratory was Shirou carrying a massive copy machine. The copy machine initially had trouble getting in through the small entrance, however, with a little effort on Shirou's part allowed the copy machine to barely make it through. Putting the copy machine down softly onto the floor as Shirou wiped his exhausted red hands on his pants to relieve the soreness, Shirou looked up at the people in front of him as he opened his mouth to speak. "Here you go, Dr. Leskinen. I got the copy machine you wanted."

Dr. Leskinen seemed for a moment dumbfounded at what Shirou brought into the room. Even Kurisu was more surprised by the fact that Shirou could carry such a heavy equipment instead of being more confused by the fact on why the professor tasked Shirou to bring a copy machine here in the lab.

"Thank you, Shirou," Dr. Leskinen spoke, clearly impressed. "However, I was not referring to this copy machine but the significantly smaller one at the other side of the room I lead you into."

Shirou's face froze at Dr. Leskinen's words. It appears he had completely misunderstood the professor's words when they were on their way to the Victor Chondria University. "Oh, sorry about that," Shirou said sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "Do you want me to put that back and get the other one?"

"Huh? Hahahahah!" Dr. Leskinen suddenly laughed in a jolly manner. "There is no need to trouble yourself, Shirou. I was hoping for this copy machine in the lab either way, just no one was willing to help this old man."

"Oh," Shirou muttered before saying out loud, "then where would you like the copy machine be positioned at?"

"Ah, there is fine," Professor Leskinen pointed to the corner of the room which was a couple yards away from the front entrance.

Shirou nodded and without a word got back to work and did accordingly to what Dr. Leskinen instructed.

"He's stronger than he looks," Kurisu found herself murmuring quietly. She immediately blushed at what she said aloud and looked around in panic to make sure no one heard her self-musing.

"There, all done. Anything else you need help with, Dr. Leskinen?" Shirou asked while looking over at the copy machine.

"Ah, yes, Shirou, I have a job for you."

"Professor!" Kurisu found herself protesting. Her professor was sometimes such a kid, completely shameless. But for her professor to ask a newcomer who does not even remember his past to work for him without pay is a bit cruel.

"Oh, good morning, Kurisu," Shirou greeted in Japanese.

Kurisu looked over at Shirou to meet him face to face.

"Good morning, Hiya – AH!" Shirou yelped out mid-sentence in horror.

Kurisu didn't even have to guess the reason behind Shirou's bewilderment. Maho-senpai does resemble a zombie early in the morning … if you consider eight o' clock early.

"Huh? Shirou?" a voice said half-asleep.

"Hiyajo-san, are you feeling alright?" Shirou tentatively asked, afraid that saying anything wrong will cause the girl in front of him to give an outburst.

"I'm," Maho yawned mid-sentence, "okay."

"Not a morning person?"

Maho just shook her head in answer as Shirou nodded in confirmation.

"You were saying, Dr. Leskinen? What can I help you with?" Shirou asked.

Kurisu was about to give another retort but decided to relent instead. Sometimes the newcomer, Shirou, is simply too nice for his own good. Even her professor is using that noble character to his advantage, Kurisu mused in disapproval.

"Yes, Shirou. But before that, may I ask how is your condition?"

"My condition?" Shirou asked to make sure he heard correctly. "Nothing really changed," Shirou began, "I still only remember a few glimpses here and there, and even that's nothing much."

Dr. Leskinen frowned as he rubbed his chin in thought. "In that case, Shirou, do you mind if you become a tester for our lab?"

"Professor!" Kurisu found herself protesting again. And this time Maho also joined her as well.

"You don't mean …?" Maho trailed off with uncertainty.

"Tester?" Shirou asked, not sure what the professor in front of him was referring to.

"Allow me to ask a question before I explain. Shirou, if you discovered you have suddenly become an artificial intelligence tomorrow, and that you are only a clone of your original self, how will you react?" Dr. Leskinen presented a mind-boggling question to Shirou.

"A.I.?" Shirou muttered in question. "Nothing," Shirou said with certainty. "I will think nothing of it. As long as I am able to help people, I'm happy."

Silence ensued the laboratory until Dr. Leskinen broke it with a laugh. "Hahaha, excellent! Then it is settled, you shall join the Amadeus project."

"Me?"

"Yes, this will prove beneficial to both sides. You can get your memory back and we can have an excellent candidate to be part of the Amadeus project."

The thought of having back his memories tempted Shirou to accept the offer right there and then. However, there was something he needed to confirm first before doing so. "What is this Amadeus project?"

Dr. Leskinen didn't hesitate to answer the question. "The Amadeus is an artificial intelligence based on a human individual's memory. You can say the artificial intelligence is the clone of the original person."

"What is it being used for?" Shirou asked. This was what he wanted to know the most.

"We are now using the Amadeus to research how the human brain works. Later, we hope once the Amadeus project goes public, we can use it in hospitals, specifically for patients who are suffering from brain-related diseases that cause memory loss … similar to you."

Shirou nodded in understanding. Helping others was a goal and sentiment he can always agree to. If a scan of his brain to create an artificial intelligence could make even a minuscule difference, Shirou would be more than happy to do so.

"If that's so, I will be happy to cooperate."

"Excellent!" Dr. Leskinen said in English as he clasped his hands together in a celebratory fashion. "Come, Shirou, let us get started."

Dr. Leskinen wasted no time to usher Shirou to the other side of the laboratory as Shirou began to witness how large the room truly is. Dr. Leskinen then opened a door which Shirou would have at first assumed to be the bathroom if not for Dr. Leskinen taking him to the laboratory of the Amadeus project. Swinging the door open, Shirou followed in with the professor as Kurisu and Maho followed closely behind. Maybe they are needed to accomplish the project, Shirou guessed.

"Here," Dr. Leskinen gestured over to an inclined chair in front of him. "Sit down while we put this headgear on you. I can walk you through the basic science of this if you like," Dr. Leskinen offered. Probably hoping to alleviate his worry of the machine that had wires coming out of the chair and running all over along the ground, Shirou thought.

Shirou nodded in gratitude as he sat down in the chair. Even though he was by no means afraid of the piece of technology in front of him, Shirou didn't mind a nice explanation of the mechanisms behind it.

Dr. Leskinen requested Maho and Kurisu to run a checkup on the machine via the computer monitors hooked onto the device to monitor its activity as Dr. Leskinen himself got the headgear ready for use.

"It is often rare to find people suited for the Amadeus project," Dr. Leskinen began. "Normally people can never stomach the idea of being an artificial intelligence and knowing that you are no longer yourself but instead a clone of the original. This self-denial and panic causes the program to grow berserk, consequently causing errors in the system, which in turn corrupts the files of the artificial intelligence. This thought can be best described as a human going completely insane.

"We have tried the Amadeus on several individuals now, of course without telling them the true purpose behind the project, and all have failed except for Amadeus "Kurisu". We have yet to test Maho, but I trust she should be a success as well," Dr. Leskinen flashed a childish grin at Maho as she wordlessly continued to stare at the screen and run the checkups.

"Simply put, right now we will be putting this headgear on you and scan your brain, then later we will digitize your thoughts, actions, personality, anything that makes you, you. As for how this procedure can help you regain your memories, it will be best to first begin by telling you that the basic understanding of amnesia is not exactly the loss of memories, more accurately it would be memories being locked away in your brain. Using the Amadeus, those memories would alternatively be unlocked as we do a scan on your brain. So, if you want, once we are finished with everything, I can allow a private conversation with you and your artificial self."

Dr. Leskinen then said no more as he placed the headgear over Shirou's head. "Ready?" Dr. Leskinen asked Maho and Kurisu in English as both of them turned around to give their professor a thumbs up.

"It would be best to close your eyes," Dr. Leskinen suggested. Shirou immediately did as he was told. "This should make you a bit dizzy," Dr. Leskinen warned before motioning for Maho and Kurisu to activate the device.

Both of Dr. Leskinen's young assistants entered the necessary commands needed in the Amadeus program as the machine whirred to life, humming in a monotonous familiar tone.

Shirou immediately felt the effects of the scanning machine once it was activated as he felt himself drifting into unconsciousness. In just a few seconds, Shirou entered into nothingness.

* * *

"Ugh," Shirou groaned uncomfortably as he struggled to open his heavy eyes.

"Shirou?!" a voice cried out. However, the voice seemed to be so far away that it was barely audible and recognizable.

"S-saber?" Shirou groaned as he persisted to open his eyes. Finally, after a couple more efforts, Shirou managed to open his groggy eyelids as he placed his hand over his dizzy semi-conscious head.

"Ugh, what happened?" Shirou asked. The procedure must have been done if the headgear was already removed.

"Huh, Shirou?" a surprised voice said in front of him. "He's awake?"

"Yeah, I told you he was waking up, Senpai," another voice joined in.

"Kurisu? Hiyajo?" Shirou questioned in confusion. His eyes were blurred as he was unable to make out the two figures in front of him.

"You woke up much faster than the estimated time," Kurisu commented as she gave Shirou a hand to lift himself up in a better seated position. Shirou gladly accepted the hand, however missing it a couple of times before Kurisu made the initiative and held Shirou's hand. Shirou wasted no time and lifted himself up in a more comfortable position before letting go of Kurisu's helping hand.

"Thank you," Shirou said with gratitude before asking, "How long was I out?"

"Ten minutes," Maho answered from a distance. "A little too fast for my comfort," she then added.

"Huh? Why?" Shirou asked as he tried to rub his blurry vision away.

"All our past candidates have taken around an hour and a half to two hours to fully regain consciousness. The earliest recorded time is an hour. Yours was one-sixth of that time," Maho explained.

"Is that bad?"

Maho shook her head. "I don't think so, however, I am wondering did the scan failed, making you wake up earlier than the usual timeframe."

Shirou shrugged, showing that he was just as clueless as Maho was in the matter. "You should know better than me."

Maho didn't answer back as she was immersed in her own world. Shirou had seen this happen to Hiyajo more than once by now to know what is going on. The first time it happened, Shirou had wondered did he offended Maho in any way or manner. However, the resulting reason was much more different than his initial assumption.

"Are you feeling better?" Kurisu finally asked as she broke the temporary serene silence.

"I'm okay," Shirou replied as he tried to stand up before tripping on one of the wires and landing back on the metallic chair with a loud thump.

"Be careful! Are you okay?" Kurisu immediately asked as she came over to Shirou's side in case he needed any assistance.

Shirou motioned that he was okay to Kurisu. "I've had worse."

Kurisu face showed instant relief before directing an inquisitive gaze at Shirou. "That's not reassuring."

"Where's Dr. Leskinen?" Shirou asked, deciding to change the topic.

Kurisu sighed at Shirou's horrible attempt in changing the topic. "He went to work on getting the digitized data ready. Maho now is contacting a digital company who specializes in making high-end three-dimensional avatars to give to your artificial self, but that only begins until your artificial self stabilizes."

Shirou nodded hazily. "When would Dr. Leskinen be done?"

"A day at the very least. Organizing all those terabytes of digitized data is no easy feat. You may have to wait until tomorrow to hear of any progress."

"In that case," Shirou attempted to stand up once again, this time succeeding in the effort, "I should be doing something since everybody is helping me out."

"Huh?" came Kurisu's dumbfounded voice at the unexpected statement.

"Anything I can help with?" Shirou asked, ignoring Kurisu's temporary confusion.

"I don't –"

"Kurisu, can you bring me some water?" Maho's voice loudly resounded the entire space.

"I'll go get it," Shirou immediately offered. "Do you want me to get you a cup as well?" Shirou asked Kirisu. "Or do you prefer something else?"

"I'll … have some coffee," Kurisu finally relented to Shirou's determination.

Shirou nodded in agreement as he briskly jogged past the door and out of the smaller room within the laboratory. Kurisu was about to do another general checkup on the brain scan machine when she heard a crash not too far away.

"Shirou?" Kurisu questioned. Even Maho had her ears perked up by the sudden noise.

"I'm okay!" came the shout from outside.

Kurisu shook her head in disapproval. It appears Shirou had once again put himself into action when he wasn't yet fully recovered. Kurisu could already think back a few cases where Shirou was already exhausted yet still insisted on helping someone with an errand. That man has no sense of self, Kurisu mentally sighed.

She wondered what would Shirou do if a life and death situation ever occurred. Would he recklessly throw his life away for the sake of "helping" others? Would he redefine the definition of stupidity by whatever reckless maneuver he is going to do in order to help others or save a life? That man seemed to never cease to confuse Kurisu. A rare feat, especially for anyone who knows Kurisu.

* * *

"Another heater having some problems?" Shirou asked as he organized the tools in his general toolkit bag.

The man with glasses nodded at Shirou. "Yeah, the heater's been acting up lately, mind giving a quick look at it?"

"I don't mind, I may be able to fix it somehow. But if it's dead, you might as well buy a new one."

"Ah, no problem," the man waved dismissingly. "Just give it a look and I'm happy," he said as he placed his hands in his lab coat pocket.

Shirou gave the man a thumbs up and closed the toolkit box as he stood up. "Same place?"

The scientist nodded.

"Then I'll meet you there in a moment, let me grab another roll of electric tape, it might prove useful."

"Okay, see you later Shirou, don't leave me hanging!"

Shirou softly laughed at the man's comment. "I'll be there."

At those words, Shirou left for the school's cleaning room. Normally they kept a couple rolls of electric tape in the storage room in case a temporary fix on the electric fuse is ever needed. Walking swiftly while pacing himself as he speed-walked towards the destination, Shirou bumped into someone he never thought he would ever be bumping into.

"Oh, sorry," Shirou immediately apologized upon the impact, he quickly looked up to see who he bumped into before raising his eyebrow in surprise. "Kurisu?!" Shirou stated in question, surprised by the fact that she is walking around in this section of the building.

"Huh? Shirou?" Kurisu turned her head at the source of welcome.

"What are you doing here?"

"Ah, n-nothing!" a flustered Kurisu answered in a hurry.

"Hmmm? Is something wrong?" Shirou asked, hoping to find out what's going on.

"W-well, you left and never came back, I was wondering what happened to you," Kurisu said in a jumbled barely coherent sentence.

"Huh? You mean the coffee?" Shirou asked. It has been about four hours since he finished his brain scan for the Amadeus project.

"W-what?! No, not the coffee. I-I mean, y-you went to get something for I and Maho, then you never showed up …" Kurisu then trailed off, not knowing how to continue from there.

"Oh, sorry," Shirou then chuckled with amusement at Kurisu's display of actions and words. "I didn't mean to make you worry."

"As if!" Kurisu retorted in embarrassment as she huffed indignantly.

"Anyway, since I saw that both of you were busy, I left the drinks on the table beside the door, you should have seen it before you came out. You both must have been really out there if you didn't hear the door creaking …" Shirou then smiled at a flustered Kurisu once the revelation was revealed. "The drink should be cold by now, do you want me to buy you another warm one instead?"

"That won't be necessary!" Kurisu yelped.

Shirou was hoping to defuse Kurisu's embarrassment, but for some reason, he seemed to be accomplishing the exact opposite.

"It'll be quick," Shirou reasoned. "I don't think it will hinder your work, will it? I mean, you came this far to find me, the least I could do is to repay you back in kind."

"W-w-what?!"

"You … don't look too good," Shirou said with a frown. Kurisu's face was now getting increasingly red by the moment. "Maybe coffee is not a good idea, what about tea? I can brew you some since they don't sell it here. That is if you don't mind the wait."

"I-I—" Kurisu stuttered out, not knowing how to respond anymore at the miraculously stubborn boy.

"Maybe Maho would like to join," Shirou added. "She's been working pretty hard as well, it'll be nice for her to unwind once in a while."

"YES! Maho will want that," Kurisu said almost too eagerly, but Shirou paid no heed to it.

"Then it's settled," Shirou said while softly hitting his right fist onto his left open palm. "We can meet at the lab once I get the heater fixed at John's lab."

"Are you getting something?" Kurisu asked.

"Um, yeah, I'm going to get some electric tape for the fix."

"Oh, in that case," Kurisu grabbed something from the left pocket of her white unblemished lab coat, "here," Kurisu handed Shirou a roll of black electric tape.

"Huh? Thank you," Shirou replied as he received the electric tape from Kurisu. "Why did you have it?"

"I happened to need it an hour ago," Kurisu answered cryptically, but Shirou left the question there.

"Okay," Shirou nodded, "I'll be heading out then. I'll meet you guys at the lab in around ten minutes … give or take. If you guys want, you can also invite Dr. Leskinen to join us."

"The professor is out now, but if he comes by later, I'll ask him. Knowing him, he'll want to join," Kurisu mumbled incoherently at the end.

Shirou smiled. "See you later," Shirou waved his hand as he set off towards John's lab.

Kurisu stood where she was at as she shook her head. That teen is simply too nice for his own good. He is going to meet a world of disappointment at this rate, Kurisu thought vehemently before walking off in the opposite direction of Shirou.

* * *

"There you are," a voice called out to Shirou.

Shirou turned his head to meet the voice. "Dr. John," Shirou greeted back.

"I was starting to doubt that you were coming here, anyway, come on in," the university professor ushered him in. Even though Dr. John's Japanese was not superb, the professor was still capable of carrying out day to day conversations in Japanese.

"Here it is," Dr. John gestured to a portable sized gray heater at the side of the room. "the heater can't seem to turn on," Dr. John explained the problem, "I think one of the wires is loose or something. I'll let you get a good look at it."

"Thanks," Shirou nodded in the professor's direction as the man left to not further disturb Shirou.

Shirou eyed the heating device for a while before scanning around his surroundings. Seeing that there is no one nearby, Shiro softly laid his hand on top of the heater as he closed his eyes.

"Trace …" Shirou's magic circuits flared to life as green glowing lights ran through the entire length of his arm. "On!" the green light extended from his limbs and into the machine.

With those simple two words uttered by Shirou, Shirou was able to analyze the entire structure of the object in front of him. Despite not knowing how he knew this, Shirou understood the magic he was casting is called by the name, Structural Analysis.

Shirou opened his eyes back again to the real world as he stared at the heater once again. Sure enough, the doctor's assumption was close to accurate. There was a severed copper wire in the heater that is hindering it from turning on. Popping the back lid of the heater open, Shirou examined the components of the heater thoroughly before finding the faulty wire.

Taking the severed wire in hand, Shirou grabbed the electric tape Kurisu gave him in hand before unrolling the tape and wrapping the wire with it. Once done, Shirou placed the wire back into the heater as he fitted the lid back into its original place. Making sure everything checked out, Shirou then plugged the heater into the electric socket and turned on the device. The heater turned on without a hitch as it quickly began to blow out hot air within a short thirty seconds. Satisfied with the results, Shirou picked up his toolkit and went to find Dr. John.

"Dr. John," Shirou called out when he found the professor just outside of his lab drinking a bottle of Dr. Pepper.

"Huh? Oh, Shirou, you done already?" came the professor's reply.

"Yeah, got it fixed and running," Shirou answered back.

The professor smiled before reaching out his hand to shake Shirou's in gratitude. "Thank you! It's been forever since the lab had a good heater running, this will surely boost the morale of the fellow lab workers!"

"No problem," Shirou replied with a smile. Shirou then paused for a second before continuing. "I have somewhere to go right now, if there is anything else you need, just give me a call."

The professor shook his head in amusement. "See you around, lad." And with that, the professor left into the room with the carbonated drink in hand.

* * *

"That … was fast," Kurisu commented when she saw Shirou coming in through the door.

"Hope I didn't keep you guys waiting too long. Anyway, do you guys have a stove around here?" Shirou asked.

Kurisu pointed to the side of the room just a few yards away. "There's one there."

"Good," Shirou nodded, "I've brought some water, a kettle, and a tea bag for our drink. But more importantly, is … Hiyajo-san okay?"

Beside Kurisu, with her head plopped lazily on the table as her hair sprawled messily on it, was Maho clearly exhausted from whatever she was doing previously.

Kurisu eyed at the said person on her right when Shirou asked his question. "She will be fine," Kurisu decided to answer. "I think she stayed up all night yesterday for some study she's doing," Kurisu frowned at her senpai's direction.

"Oh," Shirou nodded, as if the explanation Kurisu gave explained everything.

"Curse you, Kurisu …" a mumble escaped out of Maho's mouth from the table. "You know I don't like tea …"

Kurisu tactfully ignored Maho while Shirou hummed a tune as he got himself to work. For some reason, Shirou felt oddly comfortable in the presence of a stove. Shirou knew he enjoyed cooking, but as for how good he is … he had no idea.

After waiting for five minutes for the kettle of water to boil while the tea bag sat in the water, completely saturating itself in it, Shirou began to think a nice snack would be nice to come along with the Japanese tea. However, there was nothing Shirou had in his disposal to make a snack with. After all, this was a laboratory instead of a kitchen.

"Here," Shirou announced, breaking Kurisu's musing and Maho's slumber while at it. Shirou then placed down three sets of teacups on the table and filled each cup with the tea from inside the kettle. "Careful, it's hot," Shirou warned, though mostly for Maho seeing the state she was in.

Shirou then set the kettle of tea aside in the middle of the table before grabbing his own cup of tea. Taking a drink of it, Shirou was immediately dissatisfied with it. Despite the tea bag labeling itself as Japanese green tea, the tea's taste is nowhere to what he is used to … according to what little memory he could recall. Maybe he should have gotten the triangular tea bags instead …

"Hmmm, this is good, Shirou," a voice praised, alternatively breaking Shirou's train of thought.

"Huh? You like it?" Shirou asked.

"It tastes better than the tea beverages in the convenient store," came the reply from Kurisu.

Shirou's heart sank. To be compared to the level of a convenient store … that didn't sit right with Shirou. It was as if his very pride and honor were being stepped on.

"I should cook for you guys next time," Shirou said before realizing what he was saying.

"You know how to cook?" Kurisu asked with surprise.

"Well … yeah, I think."

"You think?" Kurisu frowned at those words as she repeated Shirou's answer.

"I'm pretty sure I can cook, but it feels like I'm unconsciously doing it instead of basing my skills out of memory. It's a bit confusing," Shirou sighed.

"In that case, maybe you can try cooking something for Dr. Leskinen when you stay over. I'm sure he'll say yes," Kurisu suggested.

"Maybe," Shirou mumbled. "Do you think he'll like Japanese food?"

Kurisu smiled. "He's not picky when it comes to food. In fact, he's quite adventurous with it."

"Hmmm, I think I'll take that suggestion. It'll be a great way to repay him back for all of his hospitality," Shirou thought aloud.

"Refill," a sudden half-asleep mumble broke the conversation.

Shirou looked over to his right to see a scarcely awake Maho who seemed to be barely stopping herself from dozing off as she stretched out the cup in her hand at Shirou's direction.

Shirou grabbed the cup without question and poured more tea in it.

"I need the caffeine," Maho mumbled out again.

"If you're going for caffeine, Senpai, coffee would be better," Kurisu stated a matter-of-factly.

"Here," Shirou said as he handed Maho a refilled cup of green tea.

Maho didn't hesitate before downing its entire content down her throat. Shirou inwardly winced at the sight.

"HOT, HOT, HOT, HOT, HOT, HOT" Maho chanted out mechanically as she opened her mouth in pain while fanning her burning tongue to no avail.

Kurisu looked over at Maho without mercy. "You did it to yourself, Senpai."

Shirou went over near the stove and got a bag of tissue papers as he handed it to Maho so she can clean up the spilled tea on the table which she indirectly caused when she slammed her teacup down roughly on the table's surface. Maho gingerly took the bag of tissue papers while she continued using her other hand to fan her burned tongue.

"Kurisu," Shirou suddenly addressed.

"What?" Kurisu asked in question.

"You know I've been here about a week now, and I get the fact that this school is quite prestigious, especially in the field of neuroscience. But I'm curious how you ended up here, do you mind telling me?"

Kurisu eyes glanced questioningly at Shirou before answering. "Neuroscience is technically my secondary interest," Kurisu began, "physics would be my primary one."

"Physics?" Shirou confirmed.

Kurisu nodded solemnly. "Yeah, it's just that … well, it's complicated. I took up neuroscience for the benefit of my entire family."

Sacrificing something you enjoy for the sake of others is an idea Shirou is well acquainted with, and it is also something he respects as well. "You have to be quite smart to make it to a school like this, let alone in the field of Neuroscience … and at the age of seventeen?" Shirou then nodded, completely impressed. "Your parents must be proud of you."

Kurisu softly smiled. "Thanks … and I hope so."

Shirou smiled back as he turned over to Maho's zombie form. "You must be pretty impressive yourself, Hiyajo-san, to be studying in a university when you're just in your teen years!" Shirou praised aloud.

Kurisu winced audibly at Shirou's statement as Maho stared blankly ahead at Shirou. A look which Shirou knew boded no good will for him.

After a tense silence, Maho finally spoke. "I. Hate. You." Maho mumbled out the words with a piercing stare at Shirou's direction.

Shirou was dumbfounded at those words. What did he do to deserve such treatment? All he wanted for this short tea respite was to get to know his first two friends since his amnesia a little better, and now he gets this in return?

"Why?" Shirou asked, hoping to understand.

"I. Am. Twenty-one!" Maho punctuated each word as she spoke, putting extra emphasis on her age without shame.

Shirou eyes widened and bulged out at the revelation. Twenty-one? Impossible? Inconceivable? Preposterous? All these words seemed to pop up into Shirou's mind without restraint as he tried to process the newly discovered news.

"You're … twenty-one," Shirou finally voiced out loud. This was all he could muster out of his tongue-tied mouth.

Maho continued to stare at Shirou as if daring him to say another word.

"Uh … care for another cup of tea?" Shirou awkwardly chuckled as he presented Maho with the teapot.

"No thanks," Maho shot back with a glare.

Shirou mentally winced at his horrible attempt to change the subject, reminding a person how she foolishly burned her tongue on an obviously boiling hot cup of tea was definitely not the way to go about it.

"Kurisu?" Shirou offered by presenting the teapot in Kirisu's direction.

"I'm good," Kurisu offhandedly replied as she continued to sip on the tea she still had left in her cup.

For a moment, nothing was said among them as the peaceful silence and the scent of tea permeated in the air. These were the moments which Shirou could always lie down and appreciate any time of the day. Where things are finally at peace and at rest.

"Ah, there are my favorite lab partners!" a voice resounded from behind them.

Kurisu and Maho whirled their heads around in surprise at the voice. "Professor Leskinen?!"

"Ah, Shirou is here too! And what is this heavenly smell?" Dr. Leskinen asked as he took in a deep breath at what is wafted in the air.

"Green tea," Shirou answered as he took the teapot in hand. "Would you like to try some?"

"Oh, a traditional Japanese tea party it is then? I would love to join!" Dr. Leskinen proceeded by seating himself in between Maho and Kurisu.

Shirou stood up and grabbed an extra teacup from a drawer as Shirou poured tea into it before passing the cup over to the professor.

"Mmmm," Dr. Leskinen hummed contently, "this is most excellent! Why did you not invite me Maho, Kurisu, to this traditional Japanese meeting?"

Kurisu sighed as Maho grumbled incoherently.

"Have you finished up with Amadeus?" Kurisu asked the professor while he continued to down the contents in his cup.

"Ah, yes, however, it will take a full day for the system to sort through and organize the terabytes of data."

Shirou nodded his head as he listened in on the conversation. "Thank you for all your help Dr. Leskinen, Kurisu, Maho," Shirou looked at each individual while saying each of their names with a respectful bow of his head to express his gratitude.

"The collaboration is mutual," Dr. Leskinen explained with a smile on his face. "I am glad you can help us in return."

Shirou grinned at the Dr. Leskinen's words. "It is my pleasure."

Dr. Leskinen was about to take another sip from his drink when a man in a traditional white flawless lab coat came rushing in the room. "Dr. Leskinen, Amadeus Tester Zero Two Three is compiling errors!"

Dr. Leskinen immediately stood up from his seat. "Errors? That's too fast! Has the Amadeus been activated?"

"No, but the computer is having a difficult time debugging the program. We may have to shut down the program."

"No," Dr. Leskinen quickly shot down the idea, "allow the computer to continue to re-stabilize the Amadeus."

"But—"

"Continue running the system, import it immediately into the Amadeus application once the program finishes debugging," Dr. Leskinen then turned his head over to look at Shirou. "I will be taking my leave, Shirou, thank you for the tea," Dr. Leskinen smiled at Shirou before following the other lab partner with haste.

Shirou didn't even have time to acknowledge the professor's thanks as Dr. Leskinen quickly attended to the emergency. "Is everything alright?" Shirou finally asked with slight hesitation.

Kurisu shook her head with uncertainty. "I don't know," Kurisu honestly, "this is something none of us has encountered before. I should help check it out."

"Dr. Leskinen didn't ask for our assistance," Maho informed Kurisu, no longer looking sleepy or grumpy, but instead now wore a completely serious expression.

"And when has that ever stopped you, Senpai?" Kurisu smirked mischievously as she continued to head out for the door.

Maho gave a defeated sigh. "I'm coming with you!" Maho shouted when Kurisu walked past the doorway without stopping.

Shirou simply sat in his chair while drinking the remainder of the leftover tea from the teapot, looking completely confused at what just happened

* * *

 **Thank you for reading!**

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* * *

 **Next week's update: Fate/Blade Zero: Chapter 7 (site chapter 9) – Sakura**


	3. The Amadeus Part 2

_**Chapter 3 – The Amadeus Part 2**_

"Status report," Dr. Leskinen shouted aloud as a group of scientists continued to frantically work on the computers to debug the Amadeus program.

"Compiling more errors, Doctor," a scientist spared Leskinen a reply as he continued to glue his eyes on the screen.

"Same here, Leskinen," Dr. John replied with exasperation as exhaustion is beginning to become evident among the lab members. "There's going to be no fixing this thing at the rate we're going."

Leskinen frowned at the facts presented to him as his teeth gritted in frustration. All of these strange errors that were showing up in the program now were completely unheard of before. In addition, as errors can only appear when the Amadeus program is active and possesses self-awareness, the fact that both of these occurrences have not happened yet made the rapidly compiling errors all the stranger. Furthermore, errors like these can only begin to compile and add up when the newly developed A.I. is unable to accept the fact that their memories, personality, and self are all but a product of manmade digital codes. This stunning realization which causes the program itself to have an internal breakdown. This malfunction is commonly said to be akin to a real person suffering from insanity or severe trauma.

However, this was not the case for Shirou. Errors were already appearing left and right in the complex codes of his brain before the program has even been completely compiled and activated. Contrary to common understanding, this unlikely occurrence was happening while the computer is still digesting the terabytes of data.

The impossibility of the Amadeus program experiencing errors at this early of a stage could only mean one of two things. One, the machines that are running in the scientific facility already have an issue prior to compiling the data; or two, the subject's brain is so twisted and scrambled, his thoughts so complex and unreadable, that even the scientific high-tech devices are unable to decipher the neuro-patterns of Shirou's brain and put it into digital data. Both of these notions, in Leskinen's opinion, were preposterous and absurd.

First and foremost, every lab equipment in the facility are all tested and placed under maintenance on a regular basis, making the former option unthinkable. Second, Shirou is in every way a sane man, there should be no issue for the brain scanner to decipher the boy's mind.

"Get the system running immediately," Dr. Leskinen finally gave the unexpected order.

"Are you serious?" Dr. John glanced at Leskinen with an inquisitive gaze. "This may cause problems down the road."

Leskinen nodded without hesitation. "Compile the code and activate the program."

"Aye aye, sir," Dr. John rotated his chair back to the monitor as he typed out a couple lines of command on the now black and white screen. "And …" Dr. John hit the enter button with his index finger in an exaggerative manner, "compiling!"

Everyone in the room breathed a sigh of relief now that they no longer had to combat the berserk program.

"Is … it done?" Kurisu who had been present the entire time voiced out her thoughts.

"Ah, yes," Dr. Leskinen nodded. "I am sorry you guys couldn't get more involved," Dr. Leskinen offered a light apology towards the present Kurisu and Maho who are standing idly looking at the frantic spectacle, doing nothing.

"It's no problem, Professor Leskinen," Kurisu replied courteously.

"Why couldn't we help though?" Maho huffed with dissatisfaction as she glared at the oftentimes annoying child-like professor.

"I trust you can," Dr. Leskinen assured. "However, as you have not come in contact with this problem before, it's best to leave it in the hands of the people who have been trying to debug programs like these for a while. All these scientists here are at least as capable and efficient as you are, Maho," Dr. Leskinen grinned at the short lady when he finished.

"Just because they have a 'Ph.D.' tacked at the end of their names doesn't mean they have just as good problem-solving skills as we do," Maho muttered incoherently under her breath.

Dr. Leskinen gave a booming laugh at Maho's statement. "Never underestimate a scientist, Maho," Dr. Leskinen directed a playful wink at the unhappy girl. "There is still much to be done, perhaps you would like to prove yourself on where you excel?"

"Yes, yes," Maho mumbled with a somewhat miserable face. "I'll get the Amadeus system ready for launch and connect it to the university's main server."

"Haha, that's my girl!"

Silence reigned the entire room except for the sound of typing from the still studiously working scientists.

"What did you call me, Professor Leskinen?" Maho asked with a cold, deadly whisper while a scowl slowly inched its way up her face, ready to give the professor the infamous lecture of his life she is widely known for under the said circumstances.

"Maho-senpai," Kurisu said with a small awkward chuckle, hoping that her friend would not go too far with her soon-to-come burst of tirade.

Before Maho could begin her verbal abuse at the beloved professor of the school, a person opened the door to the off-limit scientific lab. "Ah, I thought you guys came here, anyway, here's some tea for anyone who wants some."

Turning their heads around, the conversing trio stared at the source of voice to see a softly smiling Shirou who had in his hands a tray of ornately placed cups of tea with a teapot in the middle for necessary refills.

"Shirou!" Dr. John exclaimed with glee, "What a godsend! Hand me one cup!"

Shirou smiled while handing Dr. John a cup of tea before helping to the other voices which soon followed who wanted a cup of the Japanese beverage as well.

"Pffuah," Dr. John exhaled after gulping down the aromatic contents in one go. "That sure was refreshing. Shirou, mind if you get me a refill?"

"Sure, Dr. John," Shirou replied as he hurried his way over to the scientist's side.

"S-S-Shirou …" Maho growled aloud albeit quietly as the sound of her teeth grinding upon each other could only be heard by Shirou's sensitive ears.

"Huh? Hiyajo-san, did you call me?" Shirou asked as he turned his head around away from Dr. John and looked straight at the person who addressed him.

"Do you know this place is off-limits?!" Maho finally exclaimed at Shirou. From what she knew, no one – let alone an outsider who is not from the campus – is allowed inside this room except for personnel working on the Amadeus project. But here Shirou is, walking right in without a care in the world … serving tea to all present in the tech-filled room. Simply put, the entire situation cried out ridiculous.

"Off-limits? Since when?" Shirou cocked his head in question.

"There's a big sign in front of the door that writes 'off-limits'," Maho provided the information with exasperation.

"But I don't read English," Shirou answered helplessly. "Plus, I think everyone could use some tea here."

"That's not the point …" Maho trailed off before staring at Shirou with the same intense gaze she held earlier. "And it doesn't take a genius for you to see a black and yellow sign having 'off-limits' in bold black letters to know that you shouldn't go in there!"

"Oh, is that so," Shirou chuckled sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Don't tell me you had amnesia with the most basic signs like these," Maho ended dryly as she planted a hand on her face in a miserable manner.

"Maybe?" Shirou voiced with uncertainty. "Either way," Shirou continued without missing a beat, "I'll leave right away once everyone gets their fair share of green tea. It looks like everybody is working hard, so this is the least I could do for them since you are all helping me retrieve my memories."

Maho sighed as she eyed Shirou again with dissatisfaction.

"Maho-senpai, just let it go," Kurisu said with an amused smile at her friend's behavior.

Maho audibly sighed once again, this time louder as she turned around to face her back at Shirou. "Just this once," Maho replied. "Next time remember to ask permission to come in here."

"Thank you, Hiyajo-san," Shirou said with a grin. "Would you like a cup of tea while I'm at it?"

Maho spared a glance at Shirou's offer before turning away, "No thank you, I don't like tea."

Shirou's smile broadened almost mischievously. "You can drink it for the caffeine," Shirou suggested with an upbeat tone of voice.

"I'm not sleep deprived anymore," Maho responded with a dismissive wave. "And coffee better suits my taste."

"Hmmm, in that case, maybe I should brew some coffee for you next time," Shirou contemplated aloud in the midst of the room.

Maho froze mid-step at Shirou's line of declaration. "Ah … t-that won't be necessary," Maho sputtered out, her lips stuttering with minute movement as if almost in fear.

Maho could see from the corner of her eyes that her professor Leskinen had widened his eyes in surprise at Shirou's offer before smiling with a far too jolly of an expression suited for her current predicament.

"Why not?" Shirou asked in confusion. After all, was it not always a rule of thumb to help people whenever you get the chance to do so?

"Because," Maho said a little more firmly this time, "it is not necessary!"

"That … doesn't explain anything," Shirou smiled while giving a raised eyebrow in Maho's direction.

"That's a nice man you got there, Maho," a voice suddenly spoke from behind Maho as the man slung his arm around the girl's shoulder.

"H-hey!" Maho exclaimed in surprise at the sudden contact as she tried to squirm away from the man. "D-Doctor John!" Maho protested once again at the unrelenting weight of the scientist.

Shirou softly smiled at the entire spectacle. "Kurisu, tea?" Shirou asked the red-haired girl while motioning with the teapot in his hands in her direction.

Kurisu gave a small smile at Shirou's antics. "I'm good, I've already had my fill back earlier, but thanks for the offer."

"No problem," Shirou swiftly replied as he attended to the other working personnel. To be honest, Maho thought the scientific lab which was supposed to be solely focused on the Amadeus project looked more like a restaurant with a waiter attending everybody as Shirou's actions continued to play out with upbeat enthusiasm.

"Can you get off of me now?" Maho muttered coldly as she addressed Dr. John who still had an arm wrapped around her shoulder in a leaning position, saying all this as a menacing and murderous tone is emitted out through her voice.

"Haha, don't gripe, Maho," Dr. John laughed while swiftly ignoring the dark boring holes Maho was making with her eyes at him

"Y-yo-u," Maho stuttered with uncontrollable rage that is only barely masked away by her composure as a proud researcher. "T-t-this is SEXUAL HARASSMENT, you FREAK!" Maho finally kicked Dr. John's shin violently when she couldn't take the close proximity anymore, successfully making the scientist lose his grip as Maho immediately squirmed away from his arms reach.

"No need to overreact like that," Dr. John grumbled playfully with a frown, though the twinkle in his eyes proved that he enjoyed himself by teasing the flustered Maho.

"I-I-I w-will—" Maho stuttered out as more blood rushed up her head to fuel her anger while she pointed at the culprit behind her indignation.

"Maho-senpai," Kurisu said calmly with an uneasy smile as she softly restrained Maho by grabbing her shoulders and pulling her steadily back. "I think it's time for us to leave," Kurisu said sternly before she awkwardly chuckled when all the people in the room stared at her peculiarly. Kurisu quickly acted to cover her flustered response by tugging on Maho's shoulder before she ended up towing Maho away out of the room with her, leaving a completely silent room to what it was prior.

"That was uncalled for," Dr. John muttered with a contemplating face.

"Maho can either be a chain of entertainment or a product of a headache," another scientist seated before a computer monitor screen sighed.

Dr. Leskinen laughed at the comments. "It's refreshing to see Maho like this once in a while. After all, the saying goes, 'A blooming flower shows its beauty once it's true nature is revealed'."

"Huh? That's a pretty good saying. Who said that?" Shirou suddenly asked as he gathered up the now empty teacups.

Dr. Leskinen's smile broadened as he directed a wink to Shirou while pointing at himself using his thumb. "Me!"

Everyone could only shake their head in dismay at the unexpected lousy statement.

* * *

"How long is the data compilation going to take, Professor Leskinen?" Maho asked Dr. Leskinen while Kurisu and Shirou seated nearby her on the plush sofa. It's been one hour since the entire incident came to a temporary rest as the supercomputer continued to compile the massive chunks of information.

"Couple hours at least," Dr. Leskinen replied. "There are several terabytes of data for the computer to go through, we're going to need to wait until tomorrow to see the fruition of our work."

"We're not sure will it even function correctly," Maho grumbled under her breath with her arms crossed, "let alone see the 'fruition' of our work."

"Haha," Dr. Leskinen laughed, "you're still the same old Maho I knew when you just entered college."

"More tea?" Shirou asked as he prepared to lift the teapot that is placed on the table before all that were seated on the couch.

"What's with you and tea?" Maho muttered incoherently under her breath as Kurisu directed a sympathetic smile in her senpai's direction.

"Ah, yes, Shirou!" Dr. Leskinen said eagerly as he offered his teacup in Shirou's direction so Shirou could pour the cup full of the aromatic content.

"You should cut down on the tea, professor," Maho commented as she eyed her professor who, once again, guzzled down the lukewarm tea which had been out for a while in one go.

"It's not every day you get to experience authentic Japanese beverages," Dr. Leskinen responded to his research partner. "Don't let this opportunity slip away, even if it's just for the caffeine!"

"You're … killing me," Maho ended up saying in exasperation at her professor's enthusiasm for green tea as she planted her face on the table in defeat.

"Professor," Kurisu finally broke the temporary, and what Shirou thought as the serene, silence, "do you have any idea what happened earlier?"

Dr. Leskinen shook his head while his eyes closed in thought. "Unfortunately, no. To think that the data will exhibit errors in such an early stage of development is definitely unforeseen. Theoretically speaking, the Amadeus program will only not function properly under the circumstance when the A.I. is unable to fathom that all which constitutes as themselves is all but a digitized illusion, resulting what can be best described as insanity when the program begins to compile errors rapidly because of this sudden realization. However, to think errors will begin to pop up at this stage before the Amadeus program is even activated could only mean two things: either our system has a malfunction or Shirou is potentially insane to put it lightly."

"What do you mean 'to put it lightly'?" Shirou questioned suddenly at the doctor's odd choice of words.

Dr. Leskinen placed his hand onto his chin as he continued to speak. "Even if a man is insane, the system will nevertheless decipher the scanned data. If the insanity is caused by depression or denial to list a couple of examples, we can still easily erase the memories, or more accurately, logs in this case that caused the results behind this psychological trauma. Using this method, we will be able to get a sane subject for the Amadeus project given that the A.I. is able to get past the idea of him being a mere digitized data of his original self."

"I don't agree with this method, but can't you just erase memories and recreate them to make the program believe it's been a program all along?" Shirou inquired.

Dr. Leskinen shook his head once more. "No, it is one matter to erase memories, it is an entirely new matter to recreate them. While we may have the technology and capabilities to erase specific or a range of memories, but to completely recreate or alter memories is far too difficult even with our current scientific advancements. We are still in the process of understanding what the scanned codes of a human brain even means at this point, let alone twist the codes to our likings.

"In addition," Dr. Leskinen continued, "to erase such a fundamental part on how a person perceives themselves and their personal identity will be equivalent to erasing the person himself. And that does not coincide with the goal of the Amadeus Project to achieve true artificial intelligence for the greater good of mankind."

"I see," Shirou nodded his head a couple times to express his understanding.

"Professor," Kurisu began, "you're getting off topic again. To put it simply," Kurisu continued to get back on track to her original question that led to all this conversation, "the error caused now should be impossible."

"Precisely," Dr. Leskinen replied. "Since our system protocol dictates that the Amadeus system must have a routine maintenance check before data compilation, the data should not begin self-destructing itself like it did earlier due to system malfunctions. Furthermore, even a system reboot while we were mid-compiling Shirou's neuro-codes did not improve the situation the slightest bit; therefore, we can safely conclude the problem lies within the data itself instead of our systems. However, the issue lies in the fact that the alternative explanation for the error would be saying Shirou is mentally insane, which is clearly not the case here either. Therefore, as far as I currently see it, this unforeseen phenomenon should be impossible."

"Could it be there was a problem during the brain scan we had Shirou do, causing all these troubles down the line?" Maho asked with her eyes closed in a contemplative manner.

Kurisu nodded in agreement seeing how all the previous options have been easily debunked. "As you said, Maho-senpai, Shirou did wake up far earlier than any normal subjects we have ever seen."

"Even so," Dr. Leskinen began, "did you guys see any errors when translating the information to Amadeus readable data?"

Both Kurisu and Maho shook their head in answer. When the data was left untouched, nothing seemed off with it.

"Exactly!" Dr. Leskinen beamed at the two girls in front of him. "So, we can safely conclude that Shirou's earlier than normal waking has no correlation to the rapidly piling errors in the data during the compiling process."

"Then the problem lies within the compilation itself seeing how it happened at that time," Maho reconfirmed.

Dr. Leskinen shrugged nonchalantly at Maho's conclusion. "I don't know, but we will find out tomorrow when we activate Amadeus Shirou."

"What do you mean you don't know?!" Maho yelped aloud as she barely restrained herself from leaving her seat in outrage at the unexpected comment.

"This is a situation none of us has seen before," Dr. Leskinen responded to Maho's sudden yelp. "Seeing how the events that have occurred should be impossible, it is necessary for scientists to restrain themselves from making rash conclusions despite how logical it is."

"And why is that?" Maho mumbled incoherently with unbelieving eyes at why her professor is saying or even suggesting something this outrageous and nonsensical.

"Because we are dealing with the impossible," Dr. Leskinen gave a grin as he guffawed at the end.

"So you are pretty much saying to keep an open mind then, Dr. Leskinen," Shirou jumped into the conversation as Maho and Kurisu looked at Shirou in surprise at him still being there engaged in the conversation.

"Bravo!" Dr. Leskinen broadly grinned as he attempted to do a high-five in Shirou's direction which was only met with a confused expression. Dr. Leskinen motioned for Shirou to complete the action, however, Shirou lifted his finger and ended up poking the palm of the scientist's hand with uncertainty at what was going on.

Dr. Leskinen sighed at the motion as Maho looked with disbelief at Shirou's ignorance to the simplest customs while Kurisu tried her best to muffled her amused laugh at the once in a lifetime interaction she was able to witness.

"We need to work on your knowledge of American culture," Dr. Leskinen pointed out as he stated a solemn promise to make sure Shirou is up to date and well-equipped for what the world has in store for him.

"Will it help people?" Shirou asked, hoping to understand is the knowledge relevant for the sake of others.

"You bet!" Dr. Leskinen beamed at the response as he gave Shirou a thumbs up.

Shirou nodded indifferently at the answer as he gave his tacit approval to undergo this "training" while Maho and Kurisu could only sigh at how rapidly their professor is beginning to pollute the poor innocent boy before them.

* * *

"Why are we here again?" Maho asked before slumping down in her seat as she gave a jaw-breaking yawn while drawing circles in the air, motioning the American styled kitchen they were currently in.

If Kurisu had to use any word to describe the kitchen they were currently in that had a bar styled table at the side which they were seated in front of, the word to describe it would be "immaculate".

From the shining stainless steel pan bottoms that hanged proudly on a rack hooked up to the kitchen ceiling to the seemingly gleaming granite countertop and island almost made this kitchen looked like it came out from a retail advertisement. Not to mention, the aroma emitted from the frying pan only increased the comfortable atmosphere.

"Professor Leskinen invited us both here after hearing Shirou is able to cook. Which led to him deciding we should tag along to try some culinary Japanese cuisine with him in his house served exclusively by Shirou," Kurisu swiftly answered while she pointed at the busily cooking Shirou who had a light brown apron on him.

"I know that," Maho mumbled once again, "but that's not what I meant. I mean, why are WE here?"

"I know why I'm here," Kurisu continued. "I am here to try out Shirou's handiwork. But you … I have no idea, why not you answer the question yourself seeing how you are the subject of the question."

"I am here to accompany a certain naïve obnoxious red-haired girl who has no idea how dangerous it is to go to a man's house alone at night, especially with men that have no common sense or decency to walk a girl back to her house this late at night," Maho answered with partially slurred words.

Kurisu restrained herself by scoffing at her colleague's comment as she decided on the most suitable verbal counterattack. "Are you suggesting you are capable of protecting me? Is that what you are referring to?" Kurisu asked impassively though the amused glint in her eyes made Maho scowl at Kurisu's statement once she realized that Kurisu is enjoying this conversation.

"Not everything is solved with brawns, plus, there is always strength in numbers," Maho nodded sagely.

Kurisu refrained herself from refuting that statement immediately. Sometimes having more in numbers could be more of a burden than that of a strength. But Kurisu knew Maho would have foreseen that thought already and would have thus prepared a verbal counterattack for it, therefore, it was up to her to change the direction of the conversation.

"Well, regardless, I trust at the very least Shirou would be willing to accompany us back home."

"Huh?" Maho voice her disbelief confusion at what she just heard.

"Did someone call me?" Shirou shouted over the roaring fire as he worked eagerly before the frying pan as sweat gathered on his brows due to the intense heat.

"Nothing," Kurisu answered back.

Shirou shrugged and was about to get back to work before Maho interrupted.

"No, there's something! What are you planning to do after dinner ends, Shirou?" Maho asked with a mischievous look.

"Huh?" Shirou voiced out at the sudden odd question directed at him. "Do you mean what I want to do or what I can do?" Shirou ended up asking.

"Uh, want," Maho decided.

"Well, after I get you guys back home—"

"Erk," Maho accidentally let out an involuntary voiced out surprise.

"—I might take a detour to the school and help you guys get ready for tomorrow," Shirou continued. "After that, I'll go over to the park and do some … meditating."

"Meditating?" Maho questioned with confusion as Kurisu joined her with a raised eyebrow of suspicion.

"Yeah, meditating," Shirou answered without even directing a look at the two girls he was talking to as he walked back to the cupboard and chopped some carrots and onions before placing the contents into the raging frying pan. "Then after that, I'll come back here and help clean up and organize the house before preparing for tomorrow's breakfast. If there's still time after that, I'll go back to my room and do some more … meditative training. Later, I'll cook up breakfast for Dr. Leskinen then accompany him to Victor Chondria University and see whoever needs help there."

"Uh … what?" Maho asked, completely dumbfounded at Shirou's strings of statements. "Where did sleep went in your schedule?"

"You asked me what I 'want' to do," Shirou pointed out, "not what I 'need' or 'can' do."

"I sometimes wonder are you simply a saint or a masochist?" Maho voiced her thoughts aloud.

"Maho-senpai!" Kurisu protested at Maho's non-tactful statement.

"I wouldn't call myself a saint," Shirou began, "there are much more people who have accomplished far greater deeds than I ever did. However, I would not call myself a masochist either despite some people believing the contrary. I'm just myself, a person who simply likes to help people and wants to create a world where nobody will cry, a world where everybody will be eternally happy," Shirou's hand that held the spatula then slowly came to a stop at those words as if reminiscing a memory before quickly going back to work with the same vigor he held a minute ago.

"He … didn't just said that, did he?" Maho finally asked after a momentary stunned silence as she continued to stare wide-eyed at Shirou's back.

"He sure did, Senpai," Kurisu answered slowly as she had a hard time processing her thoughts while Kurisu replayed the words Shirou sincerely said earlier.

Maho tried to say something but ended up sighing. "I don't understand him."

Those words Shirou uttered, there was such longing for it that it looks like this lifelong dream defines his entire existence. A selfless life of a saint will be the best way to describe this absurd dream despite Shirou stating the contrary.

"Shirou," Kurisu finally called out again as a question bugged her in her mind to no end. The question on how far this man is willing to go and at what lengths is he willing to pursue this impossible dream.

"Yes?" Shirou answered back as he dimmed the fire to make sure the cooking food doesn't overheat.

"If you had a father who destroyed everything and everyone you loved, "Kurisu began, "but one day asks for redemption when he is about to die, hoping you to save him. Would you save him from that death?"

"Of course," Shirou answered without hesitation. "No matter what he has done in the past, if he is sincerely hoping to seek redemption, a chance to change, I am more than willing to save him. Even if it costs my life. I will be willing to save a man's life no matter the sacrifice on my behalf."

The forgiveness and the passion he exhibits to save others regardless of their past placed both Kurisu and Maho in another series of stunned silence. The sincerity he held while saying those words indicated this was no lie nor a fancy act. It is something he is saying from the depth of his heart.

"Are you human?" Maho finally asked.

Shirou gave a chuckle at the statement. "Anatomy would say so."

"You do know you can never save all, no matter how deep your desire to save is, right?" Maho asked inquisitively.

"I feel like that's not my first time hearing this," Shirou answered. "But even knowing so, is it wrong to pursue this kind of path?"

"It's not wrong," Maho started off slowly, "it's just … twisted," Maho finally decided her choice of word to describe the man's dream in front of her. "What you're trying to achieve is the impossible."

"I know," Shirou replied once again, "but even so, the dream is beautiful enough that I am willing to pursue it despite what the world dictates as impossible."

"You're going to only end up seeing a world of disappointment and regrets, Shirou," Kurisu warned aloud, concerned for the man's somewhat warped mindset in front of her.

Shirou shook his head. "I'll make sure that doesn't happen. I'm not doing this with expectations of everything will happen in the most perfect way possible. Even if tragedies upon tragedies occur beyond my control, I will not regret for the sake of the living whom I was able to save. The goal is not to just save the majority, it is to save all. If I am able to do my very best, then I'm happy."

"I … don't get him," Maho muttered under her breath. "He's a fool."

Kurisu could only absently nod her head once Shirou turned around to put the last finishing touches on the cooking dish. Despite knowing all the setbacks and consequences towards this unrealistic dream, Shirou will nevertheless continue to pursue his ideal because of its beauty and the sheer illogical hope he held for the dream to truly become a reality.

The entire night continued with a contemplative, mulling silence as Kurisu countless times ran the words of Shirou's in her head. _"The goal is not to just save the majority, it is to save ALL."_

* * *

"Mmmm," Maho immediately moaned in delight as the taste buds on her tongue registered the heavenly cuisine in her mouth. Maho didn't wait for another second as she began to quickly wolf down the food one bite after another without a pause or a word of acknowledgment to Shirou.

"M-Maho-senpai?" Kurisu chuckled awkwardly at Maho's eccentric behavior. "Are you okay?"

"Mmmm, sooooo good. Less talking – Mmmm – more eating," Maho scooped a spoon full of rice with pork and gravy as she dunked the contents into her mouth without reserve, doing all this while grabbing the fork in her left hand to help herself with some more of the steamy vegetables before her.

"Is she okay?" Kurisu finally asked the other participants in the room seeing that Maho is already far too lost in her own little world to respond to her previously asked basic question.

Dr. Leskinen simply beamed at Kurisu in having the joy of sighting the rare opportunity of Maho losing her composure in this manner. Shirou just shrugged uncertainly at what drove Maho to such ecstasy as Shirou continued to eat his meal in a rhythmic pace while motioning for Kurisu to begin eating her dish of food.

"Is this safe?" Kurisu decided to ask, fearing the same fate that has befallen on her beloved friend would happen on her.

"Of course," Shirou answered as if it was obvious once he finished swallowing his bite of food before he continued. "Why isn't it?"

"Uh, you know, never mind," Kiriu gave up on reasoning with the non-concerned chef of the day here, "shouldn't have asked."

Shirou nodded in understanding as he proceeded to continue to eat his own already half eaten food while Maho began to grab for her seconds.

Gingerly taking the spoon, Kurisu dug into the moist white rice dabbed with pork juice gravy as she took a spoonful of the content while bringing the food up to her mouth. Taking her first bite of the cuisine, Kurisu's tongue immediately registered the overwhelming explosive flavors packed in the simple Japanese cuisine as she stared wide-eyed at what she is eating.

Almost unconsciously, her jaws began to set into a rhythmic frenzy motion as she can't help herself but continue to chew faster and faster to absorb the unearthly food.

"T-This is really, really good, Shirou!" Kurisu praised in between bites, doing all this without losing her pace or stamina by a fraction of a second.

"I'm glad you like it," Shirou grinned at the busily devouring Kurisu who is completely concentrated on the food before her.

"This is excellent, Shirou!" Dr. Leskinen congratulated the man he knew not too long ago. "You should cook here every day!"

"Professor!" Kurisu protested aloud at Dr. Leskinen's statement, surprising the middle-aged professor that Kurisu was still able to be in the state of mind to process what he just said while Maho continued on to her third round without acknowledging any of their existence.

"Sure!" Shirou warmly smiled at Dr. Leskinen. "I don't see why not."

"You're being way too kind, Shirou," Kurisu sighed in defeat, knowing whatever she is going to say will ultimately fall to deaf ears.

"Would you like me to bring you some too when I arrive at the university with Dr. Leskinen?" Shirou suggested innocently.

"Wha—?" Kurisu exclaimed in surprise at the sudden turn in the conversation. "Thank you, but that will no—" Kurisu stopped herself midsentence as she felt an urge of unable to finish her next few words. At that moment, the inner desires of Kurisu's and the thought of not troubling the already kind-hearted and busy Shirou clashed together with a euphoric inaudible bang.

"Okay, then it's settled," Shirou declared as he lightly hit his right fist into his left open palm. "I'll cook some extra so you and Maho can snack on it if you ever feel exhausted from work."

"U-uh," Kurisu stuttered, not sure how to respond against the statement, rarely did she ever lose her composure in this manner.

Dr. Leskinen looked at the entire situation unfold perfectly with amusement as he finally gave a booming laugh in response.

After Dr. Leskinen quieted down, a small groan could be heard from everyone's left as all the people by the kitchen veered their eyes to the direction of the noise.

"So good," Maho mumbled incoherently as her eyes drooped with exhaustion. "This kind of food should be illegal. What kind of addictive properties does this thing have?" Maho groaned again due to her overly stuffed stomach.

"I swear I'll die if I eat like this every day," Maho mumbled out again as she lips continued to move with minute movement but with no sound coming out from it.

"Uh … Shirou-san is bringing some food for us tomorrow morning," Kurisu noted to her friend.

"Huh?" Maho asked sleepily in question before her eyes snapped open, fully awake once the message was completely processed. "WHAT?!"

* * *

"Good morning, Hiyajo-san," Shirou greeted with a warm smile and an accompanying wave of his hand as Maho looked up from her pile of work and at Shirou's direction.

"S-Shirou!" Maho yelped in surprise, fearing that the man before her is going to present another one of his otherworldly dish that's on par to yesterday evening.

"You don't look too well," Shirou creased his forehead in thought. "Are you feeling alright?"

"P-Perfectly fine!" Maho stuttered out a yelp once again.

"Okay, well," Shirou paused as he grabbed something from the bag wrapped around his waist, similar to what a utility man would often wear during work, "I've got something for you."

Maho's back immediately went frozen rigid as her back straightened immediately at his words. The only word that popped up in Maho's mind was the word "food". Food that is so good that it is undeniable and can reduce the most self-disciplined man into a ravaging glutton. Maho had been on the receiving end of this curse disguised as a blessing when she overloaded her stomach and ate beyond what her body told her to while her tongue tempted her otherwise.

If Shirou were to offer Maho something now even though she had already eaten breakfast, Maho wasn't sure does she have the necessary willpower to ward off the addictive cuisine … especially that rice with the thin slices of pork and that heavenly gravy that is evenly spread throughout the moist absorbent rice. Maho quickly shook her head profusely from side to side to scatter her chain of thoughts away before she looked straight at Shirou again who was eyeing her strangely.

"W-What is it?" Maho asked, tongue-struck and not positive on what to say in the awkward predicament.

"Here," Shirou ended up saying, ignoring the weird reaction he inadvertently incited from Maho as he handed her a large black external hard drive.

"Huh? What's this for?" Maho asked, her previous nervousness and dread now completely washed away as she looked in confusion on why Shirou handed her an external hard drive.

"Dr. Leskinen told me to hand this to you," Shirou explained. "Something about Amadeus and research data."

Maho nodded in understanding. "I get it. Thanks."

"No problem," Shirou answered as he turned his back to face Maho. "I'm going to get some work done, see you at lunch."

"R-Right …" Maho trailed off uncertainly at the statement. It seems like the incoming trial and temptation of Shirou's food was not nearly over yet to her half-hearted disappointment.

Maho then turned her rotated chair forward toward the desktop computer once Shirou left the room as she proceeded to plug the hard drive into the USB port of the lab desktop.

The file explorer quickly popped open onto the screen once the drive was plugged in, displaying a number of folders in it with a notepad file on the top of the page with a name of "_READ_ME".

Double-clicking the file, Maho was quickly able to pinpoint the speech style as none other than Dr. Leskinen himself writing this message.

" _Dear Maho!_

 _Here is Amadeus Shirou in the hard drive, part of it anyway. Enjoy activating it as part of the team!_

 _Your best and favorite professor,_

 _Dr. Leskinen."_

Maho sighed at the message before gazing seriously at the written message. There was absolutely no way for a true artificial intelligence to fit in a simple hard drive. There was simply too much data to fit in one at this point. Hence why personnel working on the Amadeus project will normally use a designated server to log into the Amadeus program and utilize the A.I. for experimentation purposes. However, to think Dr. Leskinen would provide her a hard drive filled with a part of Shirou's digitized self is nothing short of odd. Especially since he specifically designated her as the person to activate the program on the entire team's behalf, which should normally be done through the standard login method via the university's servers.

To put it simply, what Dr. Leskinen had done here is beyond the collective gain of the Amadeus project but to the degree of personal wants. This file is clearly obtained and copied without the permission of the other staff members in the lab. Although Maho was not entirely sure why Dr. Leskinen made such a risky and illegal move, Maho was still more than willing to find out the answer.

Double-clicking in the folder labeled as "Amadeus", Maho then scrolled all the way down to the number of folders and files before arriving at a file that wrote "Amadeus Application". Double-clicking the application, a window quickly appeared as it prompted the user to type in their username and password.

Typing in the necessary credentials as the application verified the authentications, the Amadeus program quickly let Maho into the application.

Nothing was heard for a moment as silence met the entire space while Maho eyed curiously at the pitch black screen. Suddenly, static filled the room as Maho was forced to cover her ears at the high pitch noise that was produced.

Maho was about to force quit the application before silence reigned the room once again while the speakers made minimal noise.

" _I-I-I—"_ more static covered the words that were all of the sudden produced through the speakers.

Listening intently, Maho leaned closer to the screen and the two sets of speakers beside it.

" _I – a-am the b-bone of m-my sword."_

What? That was all Maho could think as the static grew louder before completely ceasing as the speakers once again grew silent.

Finally, as if an oppressive aura entered the room while the curtains swayed unsteadily, the speakers voiced out once again, this time with perfect clarity while the screen glitched with uncertainty.

" **I am the bone of my sword."**

Maho widened her eyes as fear lumped in her throat while her heart dropped to her stomach at the unknown nauseating oppressive aura that is spoken through the voice. That tone of speech which spoke of tremendous and unfathomable power uttered out those words as if it were a part of his identity. The words that give people hope yet despair alike. There was no doubting it, this was the voice of none other than the innocent, kind-hearted Emiya Shirou.

Gathering up her courage, Maho finally uttered out the words that she had been desperately trying to get out of her tied up tongue towards the artificial intelligence, "S-S-Shirou?"

* * *

 **Thank you for reading! – SteelBlades333**

 **Next month's update: Fate Blade Zero – Chapter 12 (site chapter 14) – [The Tohsaka Residence]**


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